Starter Feeding Supplementation Alters Colonic Mucosal Bacterial Communities and Modulates Mucosal Immune Homeostasis in Newborn Lambs.

ABSTRACT: This study aims to investigate the effect of starter feeding supplementation on colonic mucosal bacterial communities and on mucosal immune homeostasis in pre-weaned lambs. We selected eight pairs of 10-day-old lamb twins. One twin was fed breast milk (M, n = 8), while the other was fed breast milk plus starter (M+S, n = 8). The lambs were sacrificed at 56 days age. Colonic content was collected to determine the pH and the concentrations of volatile fatty acids (VFA) and lactate. The colonic mucosa was harvested to characterize the bacterial communities using Illumina MiSeq sequencing and to determine mRNA expression levels of cytokines and toll-like receptors (TLR) using quantitative real-time PCR. The results show that starter feeding decreased luminal pH and increased the

SUBMITTER: Liu J 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5361653 | biostudies-literature | 2017

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature